As election season begins to heat up with candidate forums, I have one question: where do you all stand on providing free long-acting birth control for any teen or low-income woman in our city and our state who wants it?

A research study in St. Louis and recent information about a program in Colorado have proven that when teenagers and poor women are offered free, long-acting birth control methods, results are astonishing.

Sexually active teens and women in poverty have chosen these methods overwhelmingly when they are provided confidentially and at no cost. Consequently, the pregnancy and abortion rates in their communities have plunged. Not only that, but the poverty rate also goes down.

Here in Federal Way, we need to be paying attention. Teen birth rates may be going down in general in the U.S., but they are much higher in communities where the poverty rate is higher. And in Federal Way,our poverty rate is nearly 3 percent higher than the state average.

Public funding of long-acting birth control methods for women prevents millions of unintended pregnancies and hundreds of thousands of abortions every year.

You may not want to pay for long-acting birth control for teens and poor women, but make no mistake— you’ll pay one way or the other.

In Colorado, an assessment by the state health department stated each dollar spent on long-acting reversible contraceptives saves almost $6 for the state’s Medicaid program. And guess what pays for more than 75 percent of teenage pregnancies and births? Yep. Medicaid. That happens here in Washington, too.

Here in Federal Way, I want to live in a community that openly supports young women to have a say over when and with whom they have children. I want to live in a community that sees the connection between unintended pregnancy and poverty, and steps up to provide services to help make sure people don’t have to be parents before they want to.

I want to live in a community that takes a holistic view of this issue — a community that provides high-quality, comprehensive and inclusive sexuality education. I want the kind of education that educates throughout the lifespan about families and bodies and choices and gender and communication and attraction and pit falls and support systems.

I want medically accurate education, not scare tactics and attempts to gross kids out about sex. I want all of our children to live in a place where people are valuedand treated with dignity and respect.

Frankly, we’re not there yet, Federal Way.

We can pay for health care for millions of unintended pregnancies — or we can advocate for public funding for low-income women who fall through the cracks. We can help them receive free, effective long-acting birth control. Women who have access to birth control are better able to finish their education, support themselves financially and get and keep employment.

Where will your voice be this election season?

Federal Way resident Amy Johnson, MSW, is a trainer, educator and coach in the Pacific Northwest. She is co-author of the books “Parenting by Strengths: A Parent’s Guide for Challenging Situations” and“Homegrown Faith and Justice.” Amy facilitates classes and workshops in the Puget Sound area and online. She specializes in working with parents and in sexuality education.